UK
Euston shooting: Man, 22, arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after ‘drive-by’ outside church
A man has been arrested following a drive-by shooting outside a church near London’s Euston station.
Four women and two girls, aged seven and 12, were injured in the shooting outside St Aloysius Church on Phoenix Road on Saturday afternoon.
The Metropolitan Police said a 22-year-old man was arrested after a car was stopped in Cricklewood Lane, Barnet, shortly before 4pm on Sunday.
He has been taken into custody.
The seven-year-old girl injured in the attack remains in a stable but critical condition, while a 48-year-old woman suffered potentially life-changing injuries.
The 12-year-old suffered leg injuries but has since been discharged from hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.
Three women aged 21, 41 and 54 were also taken to hospital after the incident and their conditions were assessed as non-life threatening.
Police said they believe the gunman fired a shotgun from a car at around 1.30pm before driving off.
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Panic inside church after shooting
The shots sent mourners running and screaming, with many of them sheltering inside the church, witnesses said.
The shooting took place after a memorial service was held for 20-year-old Sara Sanchez and her mother, Fresia Calderon, who had died within a month of one another in November.
Ms Sanchez had died following a battle with leukaemia, while her mother Ms Calderon died suddenly from a rare blood clot after travelling into Heathrow Airport from Colombia, MyLondon reported.
Sara Sanchez (right) and her mother Fresia Calderon
Father Jeremy Trood, the priest who conducted the service before the shooting took place, described the scenes as “pandemonium”.
He told Sky News he heard a loud gunshot shortly after mourners left the church to release doves outside before people started rushing back into the building.
Superintendent Jack Rowlands, from the Metropolitan Police, described the incident as a “senseless act of violence”.
People who attended the memorial service at the church in Phoenix Road told Sky News they do not know why it happened.
Those who knew the mother and daughter who died said those hurt in the incident were attending the service in their memory.